by Scottbot » Sun Jun 17, 2007 12:47 am
A move to Liverpool would be good for Bent
By Gary Lineker, Sunday Telegraph
Last Updated: 11:45pm BST 16/06/2007
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It was interesting to see Darren Bent turning down what by all accounts was a lucrative move to West Ham last week. Regular readers of this column will know that I'm a big admirer of Bent, and I think he has made the right decision.
Don't get me wrong - West Ham are a great club with bags of ambition. However, Bent is at a crucial moment in his career and timing is very important in football. England are short of quick, powerful, direct strikers and Bent fits that bill perfectly. With Charlton, he has scored goals in a team who struggled all last season and joining West Ham, who only survived by the skin of their teeth, would place him in a similar context.
What he needs now, though, is to refine his game against the very best. And that means European football. Playing against top-end continentals is essential to your development as an England international. The high tempo of the Premiership is tough but you also need to learn how to play on foreign fields, at a different speed.
The way the game is played in England means you get a decent number of chances. You work hard and you compete for every ball. Yet if you come up against the likes of Paolo Maldini and the rest of the Milan defence, you might only get a couple of half-chances. Being a top striker is being able to concentrate enough to put those away. It is about cultivating that predatory instinct.
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There is no doubt that Bent would not have turned down West Ham if he didn't have another interested party or two in the wings - Liverpool and Tottenham are the apparent suitors. Both are competing in Europe next season. If there is a chance of moving to a place like Anfield you have to take it because it might not come around again.
Wherever he ends up, it seems he will earn less than West Ham were willing to pay him. But for players, the real currency is silverware. It would be a mark of unbelievable greed if your only motivation in making a move was money -- it is all relative after all, you still earn thousands and thousands a week. West Ham fans want players coming to their club who have the desire to achieve on the pitch.
So if you find yourself to be in the position of Bent, being able to pick and choose a bit, you have to go for the most ambitious move.
That is the mark of player who is a real player, who is not afraid of the competition or the expectation. You need real strength of mind at a top club and it will be interesting to see if Bent has that.
I like Bent a lot. He is very quick and powerful, he is great in the air and he is an accomplished finisher. Working with someone like Rafa Benitez would be fantastic for his development and it would be great news for England. You can understand that if Liverpool are talking, then he is listening.
Great film it was on Sky movies last week very sad,
red all over the land
by maguskwt » Sat Aug 29, 2015 2:20 pm
